What is a snapshot?

Think of a group photo: it shows who was there when it was taken, not who arrived later. In the same way, a snapshot captures blockchain data at a specific point in its history.

With NFTs and tokens, what usually matters is which address held what at a specific block. A project’s team can use this data to decide who is eligible for a token distribution, access to a feature or a vote. A snapshot can also be calculated after the fact by reading the network’s historical data.

For example, an NFT collection announces it will give its holders a new NFT based on a specific snapshot. If you buy after the reference block, your purchase doesn’t change that record. If you sell later, your address still appears as a holder in the old snapshot. Whether you ultimately qualify for the reward also depends on the distribution’s other terms.

Why it matters

The balance you see in your wallet today isn’t always what counts. An airdrop may look at past holdings, transactions or other criteria, using one or more snapshots. Being included in a snapshot doesn’t guarantee a reward.

In decentralized governance, a reference block can set each address’s voting power. That way, token transfers after that block don’t change the distribution of votes for that particular vote. You’ll also come across Snapshot as the name of a voting platform, not just as a general term for a record.

What to watch out for

We always separate being recorded from claiming a reward. To have a public address recorded, you don’t need to hand over your seed phrase or private key, or sign any transaction. A later collection process, known as a claim, is a separate step that needs to be checked on its own.

If you keep tokens on an exchange, the blockchain usually shows an address controlled by the exchange. Whether you’ll receive a related reward depends on the project’s terms and the exchange’s support.